1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a card connector, and more particularly to a card connector having an ejector for moving a card towards an ejecting direction.
2. Description of Prior Arts
Recently, card-in operation type electronic devices have rapidly prevailed in which a user-owned IC card is inserted, when necessity arises, into a give electronic device such as a camera, a personal computer, a recording machine or the like so that information from such an electronic device is recorded in the IC card or information from the IC card is given to such an electronic device.
In the conventional art, as means for withdrawing or ejecting a memory card inserted in a card-in operation type electronic device, the depth dimension of insertion of the memory card is set such that a rear end of the card projects from a card inlet port when the memory is inserted, thereby allowing the user to withdraw the projected rear end using his fingers. However, such arrangement for withdrawing the memory card by pinching the projected end with the user's fingers requires an appropriate amount of projection of the card to allow the user to pinch the card with his fingers. This projection badly spoils an outer appearance of the device. Also, chances are increased for damaging the card by external shock or impact. In addition, the individual user should withdraw the memory card, which is frictionally contacted with contact, in an abnormal attitude, the card would likely be damaged or a large load would be required for the user to withdraw the memory card.
One approach to resolve the problem is to apply a special ejector in a card connector of the card-in operation type electronic device. Such ejector has an eject button disposed at an area in the vicinity of the card inlet port so that the user can push this eject button after use in order to actuate an ejecting lever of the ejector for ejection of the card (releasing of the card).
As shown in FIG. 6, an ejector operated by pushing an eject button is disclosed. The ejector has a pushing bar 610 with an eject button for user take an actuating action, a base 611 with a guiding groove 6110, a slider 612 coupling with the pushing bar 610 and with a protrusion moving in the guiding groove 6110, an operating bar 620 and an ejecting section (not shown) for engaging with a card directly. When the card is received in the card connector completely, the slider 612 is desired to locate at a locking position where the pushing bar 610 generally has no portion disposed out of the card connector, and when the card is ejected, pushing the eject button of the pushing bar 610 forwardly to make the slider move backwardly to a releasing position where the ejecting bar has a long portion projecting out of the card connector, then pushing the eject button again, the slider moving forwardly to the locking position together with the operating bar 611 moving forwardly and the operating bar forced to move backwardly to eject the card.
However, this design also possesses a shortcoming. As described above, when the card is ejected and no card in the card connector, the pushing bar is moved forwardly and only has a short portion disposed out of the card connector. If the pushing bar is operated by a user carelessly, the pushing bar will protrude outwardly and has a long portion disposed out of the card connector. There, chances will occur to damage the pushing bar by a user impact or other external devices. Furthermore, the long protrusion of the pushing bar take a large room and damage an entire speciously appearance of the card connector.
Therefore, the present invention is directed to solving the problem by providing a card connector which has a new and improved ejector.